Day 2

Me in my brand new fleece coat.

Day two on the mountain was a little bit more stressful. Not because of work, or the cold, but because I was sitting behind the wheel of a farm truck all day, listening to an old man talk about nonsense. I could barely enjoy the scenery, because he just talked so much. Anyway, we ended up driving around all day, and getting almost nothing accomplished. It was almost dark by the time we got back, and by the time I got dinner started, it was so dark that we had to use flashlights to see our food.
Wildlife starts to come out once the sun drops below the tree line. As I was driving, I saw wild turkey, deer, grouse, elk, and wild rabbits. There was a doe that had been hit by a vehicle, and had a broken leg. I felt so sorry for it, and pulled over to see if I could help it in any way, but was told there was nothing I could do for it, since it was terrified of me. There were so many deer. I had to slow down often for herds crossing the road. I can definitely see why the slow speed limits are necessary. I could hear coyotes once it got dark enough to use my headlights.
It got cold as soon as the sun set. Since it was so clear, there were no clouds to hold the heat in, so as soon as the sun disappeared behind the trees, the temperature dropped almost 30 degrees. Night time up here is beautiful. It gets dark so suddenly that at first you can't see anything but then the stars start to come out. The sky at night is breathtaking. The stars are so big and bright, and there are so many of them. More stars than you could ever see in any city. There was a crescent moon, and the night was so clear, you could see the entire outline of the moon, not just the crescent part. I saw Venus, the planet usually mistaken for the evening star. The sky is so alive at night, it makes me feel so small.
I definitely can feel power and peace in the energy on this mountain, and I think I'm going to change somehow over this trip.
C'est La Vie.
Viva La Vida.
And Fuck The System.
Peace.
Signed, Esther Dolezal ♪♫